Resveratrol in Japanese Knotweed (polygonum cuspidatum)

If you look at the labels on most resveratrol supplements, you will not find grape or wine extracts, despite these beverages' association with the anti-aging, healthful compound. Instead, you'll see a curious source for resveratrol: Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum). Huh? Not a common part of your daily diet? Never finished off a plate of braised knotweed with a swig of 2008 knotweed wine?

Well, you're not alone, but there's nothing to worry about. Japanese knotweed is a common plant (some might even say invasive plant, or weed) that is exceptionally cheap to cultivate but which is very high in naturally-occurring resveratrol.

Grapes, grape juice, and wine, the last especially, are generally far more expensive sources of resveratrol than knotweed, which, if processed properly, produces the exact same natural resveratrol (including the bioactive trans-resveratrol) as the sweet, red fruit and wine.

Are there any drawbacks to getting your resveratrol from knotweed? There is one, possibly: knotweed also has a high concentration of a substance called emodin, a natural laxative. So, along with your resveratrol, unpurified Japanese knotweed extracts will also help you "stay regular." In fact, in traditional Chinese medicine, knotweed is called hu zhang, and is prescribed for constipation.

Otherwise, knotweed is used by beekeepers as a great source of nectar for honeybees, and its stalks can even be eaten much like rhubarb, although its high levels of oxalic acid (a natural substance, in spinach and other foods as well, that can aggravate kidney stones) and emodin should caution anyone to consume it in moderation.

So, is there any reason to avoid resveratrol from Japanese knotweed in favor of wine, grapes, or other sources? Absolutely not, unless you have a very sensitive stomach and don't need anything with an even mild laxative effect added to your diet.

Comments

No HTML is allowed in comments, but URLs will be hyperlinked. Comments are not for promoting your articles or other sites.

sending

Audrey Hunt 7 years agofrom Idyllwild Ca.

Excellent information that I did not know. Thanks for this good hub.

Life at DrTom's 7 years agofrom Ithaca, NY

Geesh, don't encourage people to cultivate this pest. It has taken over the banks of major rivers in the Northeast, and it is extremely aggressive. There is so much of it out there, simply harvest that.

Steve Andrews 7 years agofrom Lisbon, Portugal

They are trying to eliminate this plant as an invasive weed in the UK. I never knew it had this use though. A very informative hub!

Vita 7 years ago

Japanese Knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum) is very invasive. l would suggest you find it growing locally rather than planting it. l live in upstate NY and it is everywhere once you learn to recognize it. l have eaten the young shoots and juiced them, they have a rather lemony flavor.

Medical Writer 7 years agofrom Great Britain

Can this grow anywhere.

Louis Taylor 7 years agofrom UK

Any source how to grow the knotweed? Im a gardener, wouldnt mind trying it :)

Shari 7 years agofrom New York, NY

sounds like a win win situation here. . I think I am just going to have to try some Japanese Knotweed. Thanks for sharing this. . great info!

India Arnold 7 years agofrom Northern, California

Cool hub! I learned a lot about what I should and shouldn't be consuming. Thanks for some great information.

Author

Jason Menayan 7 years agofrom San Francisco

Pcunix: Yes, they are - good point.

Jstankevicz: Maybe not so appealing...but who knows! I'm waiting to see it on a menu somewhere...

jstankevicz 7 years agofrom Cave Creek

"eaten much like rhubarb..." hmmm, I'm picturing a slice of strawberry/knotwood pie ... thanks for the resveratrol insights!

Tony Lawrence 7 years agofrom SE MA

Peanuts are an inexpensive source of resveratol and many, many other important nutrients/micro nutrients.

Author

Jason Menayan 7 years agofrom San Francisco

Nothing wrong with that! ;-)

SteveoMc 7 years agofrom Pacific NorthWest

Thanks for the info....of course, I would rather drink wine. Oh well.

Author

Jason Menayan 7 years agofrom San Francisco

You're quite welcome!

scla 7 years agofrom Southern California

Thank you for pointing out additional products that contain Resveratrol. Good to know additional sources of this anti-aging product.

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

This is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)

Google AdSense Host API

This service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)

This is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)

Facebook Login

You can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)

Maven

This supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)

We may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.

Conversion Tracking Pixels

We may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.

Statistics

Author Google Analytics

This is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)

Comscore

ComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)

Amazon Tracking Pixel

Some articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)